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solstice98

Black & White?

solstice98
18 years ago

I just started playing around with removing the color from digital shots and thought this might be the right forum to share this picture. I don't think I've done anything in black and white for 20 years (!) but this was fun to try.

If anyone else has a b/w to share, please add it!

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Comments (8)

  • plantfreak
    18 years ago

    Interesting idea, but these digital images that have been desaturated just don't look the same to me as a true black and white photo. I remember the countless hours I spent in the darkroom doing alchemy with BW photos. What fun that was. When digital came along, I snubbed my nose to it. It was too easy I said, just push a key and BAM! the picture is solarized. And so on. Now here I am 15 years later and I've given in to digital technology. Still, I'll never forget the old days and the joy of watching an image form on the paper in a developer bath...ahhh.

    Here are my lame attempts at desaturating a couple digital shots. The first is an orchid, Paphiopedilum bellatullum:

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    And next, a couple of sugi (Cryptomeria japonica) on a nearby mountain:

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    PF

  • JoanMN
    18 years ago

    Beautiful pics!! Here's mine:
    {{gwi:59846}}

  • stacey_turner
    18 years ago

    Plantfreak, I find I have to fiddle with levels and contrast to make a b&w image desaturated from color look good. My camera has a b&w setting, though, and those photos look good. I was a film snob for years too; I even developed my own black and white film in my kitchen. :-)

  • solstice98
    Original Author
    18 years ago

    PF and Joan - thanks for sharing photos! I agree that digitals give a different effect from film, but what remains the same is the art of the composition. With b/w it's not so much how attractive the image is, but "is it a good picture?". The balance, the flow, the contrast. How it evokes some emotion. Is it an image you could look at again and again. I'm not saying color images aren't art, just that b/w photography is a different kind of art.

  • plantfreak
    18 years ago

    I find B&W photography to be useful when you wish to evoke emotion. It is more artistic than color photography. People get fooled by color pictures, as though they depicted reality or that was their purpose. B&W is somehow more basic. Because of this, it is paramount that the shot is a good one. Nothing is worse than a poor B&W photo-it stands out immediately. By contrast, a bad color photo can "hide" behind the rainbow to some extent. I will always love the simple, yet subtle beauty of a good B&W photo. PF

  • Garden_Momma
    18 years ago

    These pics are so awesome,so delicate...I like B&W's, they touch an inner me, I don't know maybe something like a picture from your childhood when things seemed simple...I tried a few pics if you'ld like to see and I'm not much of expert, so please pardon the quality. Maybe someone can offer their expertise?...

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  • Joyce
    18 years ago

    Nice pix!

    Here are a few of mine converted to grayscale.
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    This is truly a test of composition.
    To me, it seems like only those with an extremely good composition are suitable for B&W.

  • alinehuey
    18 years ago

    You know what is cool about your pictures? They take no time to load.
    I enjoyed them. thanks for sharing.

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